Mythical Creatures
by KBecks87
Summary: Set during/After 107 (Contents Under Pressure). Clarke/Octavia friendship. Pre-Bellark if you squint. One Shot.


Disclaimer: I don't own anything you'd want...

During/After 107 (Contents Under Pressure) based on this exchange:  
Clarke: I never wanted him to get hurt, Octavia. You have to know that. I just wanted to save Finn.  
Octavia: For the record, you didn't save Finn. That was me. But whatever you want to tell yourself to feel better.

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Mythical Creatures

After Miller chases her out of the top level of the drop ship and away from the mysterious Grounder, Octavia climbs to the middle level and paces around a bit – she doesn't want to go far, thinking that somehow her proximity might keep the Grounder safe, but it's infuriating to be so close but not be able to see him. Bellamy watches her indecision from across the width of the ship, balancing on the ladder – she hasn't seen him yet, he's buried in a shadow as he climbs, trying to figure out what to say to her when Clarke's voice surprises them both – she had been sitting against the far wall and hasn't spotted him yet either.

"I don't know what the right thing was here, 'Tavia" she says quietly. Octavia sighs and sits down next to her with a little nod. "I mean, I don't want to be the kind of person who tortures other people, but I also don't want to be the kind of person who lets a friend die of poison when the antidote is 20 feet away" Clarke sighs, "So I don't know what the right answer was today…or if there even was one"

Octavia sniffles a little before she tilts to head to rest on Clarke's shoulder, "He saved me" she almost whispered.

Clarke nods a little, "He also stabbed Finn" Octavia opens her mouth to counter, so Clark continues quickly, "And maybe he was scared and defending himself…but he was still willing to let him die of the poison" Clarke shakes her head a little, "I don't know…I'm just saying that maybe it isn't as black and white as we'd like it to be"

To Bellamy's complete a total surprise, Octavia mumbles a quiet 'yeah' while tears well up in her eyes and Clarke's arm wraps around her shoulders. He's getting ready to pull himself the rest of the way up the ladder when he hears something that shocks him even more.

"You know, you ought not be so hard on Bellamy" Clarke say quietly. Octavia snorts through her tears and both girls laugh a little, "he takes making sure your safe so seriously – it's like the one thing he's dependable at" Clarke says, with a bit of a teasing tone.

Octavia laughs a little again, sadly, "I think I ruined his life" she whispers. Bellamy's heart breaks a little and he's ready to give himself up to the eavesdropping until he hears Clarke tell her something that he has many times, maybe she'll hear it better from someone else.

"What? 'Tay – no" Clarke says shaking her head, "That's crazy – you have a brother, who, for all of his faults, loves you and would do anything for you" Clarke pauses, pulling in a deep breath, "That's amazing" she whispers almost reverently.

Octavia snorts a little with a shake of her head, but smiles. It's quiet for a long moment before Bellamy decides that it's time to make his entrance, so he makes a show of making some noise on the ladder and coming up. When they see him, Clarke turns her head to kiss the top of Octavia's head then stands, "I'll let you two…" she trails off, gesturing between then before climbing down the ladder. Bellamy takes her place on the floor by his sister.

A few hours later, Bellamy finds her sitting by the fire and sits down next to her. She glances up at him with a nod of acknowledgment and they sit in companionable silence for a long few minutes before Clarke breaks it with quiet words, "Did you know that I knew Octavia in the SkyBox?"

He's both taken aback a not. He didn't know that, but after the exchange he saw between the two a few hours ago, he knew they must have a deeper connection than he's been aware of. He is surprised that Octavia didn't tell him though. "No. I did not know that" he says finally.

"Well. Sort of" She amends tilting her head to the side in thought. "I was not allowed around the others – they were afraid I'd tell them about the air" she's quiet when she talks and he moves a bit closer to hear her, "but the others had jobs and Octavia delivered meals, I suppose they gave her the job to socialize her a bit" he nods – he'd know that. "The guards, after she'd been there a while, decided she was trust-worthy and didn't monitor her so closely, so she'd bring mine last and sit outside my door and we'd talk" she smiled fondly at the memory, "sometimes she'd be the only person I'd talk to in a week". There's a long pause before, "She's sneak me art supplies sometimes – pencils or charcoal – anything that would mark the walls."

Bellamy wants to say something, anything, but he can't think of anything so he just nods a little. "I never told her about that air" she says, answering a question he didn't know he had, "I knew that when they reviewed her at eighteen, they'd probably let her go, but not if they thought she had any idea" she half shrugs and Bellamy puts a grateful hand on her arm. She smiles, "The way she talked about you…" She trails off and gives a half shake of her head, "I thought you were a mythical creature" they both laugh a little. "Imagine my surprise when I met…you" she deadpans in a tease and he bumps her shoulder with his incredulously. "She loves you so much. Wants so badly to make you proud and happy…" she looks up at him, "She has to grow up a little, maybe grow away a bit, but she loves you far too much not to grow back towards you"

Bellamy nods, "I just worry"

Clarks barks out a laugh, "Now there's an understatement".

"I know she has to grow up…make her own decisions and mistakes and life…but everything is so dangerous here, and if something happened to her I -" he cuts himself off, shaking the thought from his head.

"You can watch out for her and let her make her own decisions. It's not mutually exclusive" he nods but doesn't look convinced, so she adds "I'll help you" in a near whisper, and she is wholly unprepared when he puts an arm around her and pulls her into a tight side hug murmuring 'thank you' into her ear before releasing her.

They stay there, sitting side-by-side in front of the fire for a long while.

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